The Twelfth Branch
by AwkwardDuckling
Summary: Artemis has lost her hunters, well, some of them. Thalia, Zita, and Mei-Yin go on a quest to find the Twelve missing Hunters. Sort of future-fic, I guess? Includes LOTS of OCs, and novice writing (the worst writing of all).
1. Chapter 1

Artemis looked through the file cabinet.

"1…2…3…4…" she muttered. Where on earth could the stupid file be? Immortal goddesses have paperwork too, especially ones who have groups of huntresses to keep track of. The least the Olympians could do is keep Apollo out of here.

"8…9…10…11…" Artemis continued to count. "Finally!" she exclaimed. Here it was; the 12th Branch's records.

Branch Twelve

On the evening of December Twelfth, 1777, Lucille Andrews was admitted to the newly established branch, at the age of 14, Becoming the first American Demigod to do so…

Artemis continued reading, there was something strange going on. Usually, the papers auto-updated things such as the Huntresses and what monsters they had killed, but the rest of the file contained blank pages.

There was nothing dated past March 1st, 2033. Artemis, for the first time since the Colorado incident, had lost her Hunters.

"Gee, thanks all-knowing-scroll-thingy, you really were helpful." That Jackson bo-_man_ was going to kill her. Losing his daughter a day after she signed up? _Nice move, Artemis._

She had to find them, some of them were no older than 10, others were nearly defenseless mortals. Well, immortals. She also didn't want the Jacksons as enemies. _That_ would suck. Also, Poseidon and Athena were nothing to laugh at, but they'd never quit arguing long enough to notice.

Artemis hastily put the files back, opened the tent, and almost ran smack into Thalia Grace.

"Oh! Lady Artemis, are you okay?" Thalia asked. Artemis's lieutenant had fallen backward in the snow from surprise. She looked the same as always, but she had let her hair grow out, it was short in the back, but came down to her shoulders in the front.

"No, Thalia, I'm fine." Artemis replied. "Why were you outside of my tent?"

Thalia made a big show of slowly getting up and brushing of her pants before she answered.

"It's just… Esme's sick, she can't go on that Gorgon quest like you asked."

"Oh." Artemis was surprised; Esme was a daughter of her idiotic brother, Apollo. Could she even _get _sick? Let alone stay that way? "Uh… send Annabell."

"Annie's on that independent quest to make up for pranking Tasha, milady."

"Tasha, then."

'She can't move her legs, remember? They're still tied up."

"Sybil?"

"She left for the 3rd branch yesterday."

"Beatrice?"

"Still in recovery."

"Miranda?"

"Also in recovery, damn that Manticore."

"Andy?"

"Andy is still missing… Milady, are you all right?"


	2. Chapter 2

**I DON'T OWN PJO, RICK RIORDIAN DOES. ****I am simply his sassy Christmas elf.**

**THALIA STARED AT THE PICTURE**. She couldn't believe ten perfectly capable hunters had disappeared without a trace. Poof! It felt like some sick joke that Cathenna, Percy and Annabeth's only daughter, had joined one day previous. _How will I tell Annabeth?_ She thought.

"Can-Can stuff like this even happen?" She asked. "How exactly do ten hunters get lost, let alone defy a magic scroll made by Hecate herself, without alerting _someone_ of their location?"

"I don't know, and you know how much I hat not knowing." Artemis said. After finally agreeing to send Alysia to fight the reformed Gorgons, she sat cris-cross in front of her leader. It was weird being three years older than your senior, especially if they're an immortal goddess.

"So… We need a quest, right? I could go up to camp and consult Rachel, or I could send some hunter up to where they were last, or-"

"No." Artemis cut Thalia's ramblings off. "There is no need for panic, at least not yet, this is not the first time the scroll has 'lagged', nor will it be the last. It probably got overloaded with information, which happens occasionally." Artemis paused. Thalia seized the opportunity.

"Milady, there are two legacies of the 'Big Three' in this group. There's also a _very _powerful daughter of Hecate. With all that power, it should be irresistible to monsters! What if all of the monsters attacking them made the scroll lag? Even if it _is_ just slowing down, they could still need help."

They sat in silence for a while. For a terrifying moment, Thalia thought she had finally back talked one too many times, and she'd be exiting the tent as a gerbil.

"You… make a… powerful point, Thalia." Artemis said, pausing to look for the right words. "We shall send a search party…as soon as Mei-Yin and Zita wake up and are ready. Is that _okay,_ Lieutenant?"

"Yes it's perfectly- Oh, you were being sarcastic weren't you?" Ever since Artemis decided to 'catch up with the modern tongue' she had been harder to understand, not easier. _But,_ Thalia thought, _I'll take what I can get._

~~~~~~~~~~~SUGOI TIMESKIP OF EPICNESS~~~~~~~~~~~

Thalia tapped her foot nervously. She was tired of waiting for the second oldest and the second youngest hunters to wake up. Everyone knows that the new Demeter kid they let in, Zita slept the latest.

"Ahhhhh…Thalia?" Mei-Yin said, rubbing her eyes. "Why are you outside my tent?" Mei was easily Thalia's favorite hunter. She was calm in a crisis, a steady shot, and she could rap Fancy (Iggy Azalea) at _least_ five times faster than the original, almost making her like that old song. Key word: _almost._

She was also a legacy of Venus and Apollo. Greek Apollo, luckily, or else she'd be with _Diana._

"Hurry up, Zheng; we have a quest to follow." Thalia said. She meant it to sound stern, but she ended up laughing. Mei's usually calm, long dark hair was in such a tangled mess, Aphrodite wouldn't be able to fix it.

"S-Shut up, Thalia!" Mei said, but she was also smiling. "I'll be ready in a minute, want me to wake up someone else?"

"See if you can awaken the beast that is Zita." Thalia joked. "Don't get your head chopped off, though, you're my favorite."

Mei-Yin beamed with pride, and then went in to get ready. A minute later, as promised, she came out in the standard camo hoodie, cargo pants, and hiking boots. Her hair had (most likely magically) been pulled into a braid. With her favorite bow in her hand, she looked ready for battle. She truly lived up to her name, too bad she was eternally 14, she would have been a beautiful adult.

The same could not be said about Zita. Her tightly curled brown flew out everywhere, her hoodie was inside out, and her boots were untied. She still looked half asleep.

"Zita!" Thalia said, snapping her fingers in her face. "Wake up! We have a quest!" _That_ effectively woke her up.

"A _quest?_" She exclaimed. "Por todos los dioses ! Me veo como una bestia ! I'm not ready at all!"

Zita often broke in to Spanish when she was flustered, and now was one of those times. She laced up her boots, flipped disentangled her jacket and grabbed her two daggers. One was Celestial Bronze, the other just Iron. Usually those weren't allowed, 'they can only hurt mortals' and all that jazz, but for the hunters, wild animals were also a threat.

"Okay, I'm ready. What's the quest?" Zita didn't look ready, but Thalia guessed her hair wasn't really an issue here.

"The twelfth division is…distant." Thalia started slowly. Zita was only eleven; she didn't want to scare her. "Usually, a scroll tells Artemis what's going on in the different Branches, but there's been no feedback from the twelfth for about a week, so we're checking on them."

"Okay, so… weren't they in Sacramento?" Said Mei-Yin.

"Yeah, they had just picked up their newest member, Cathenna Jackson." Bringing up the youngest Jackson was tough. Thalia loved the kid, she was _pretty_ badass for a 14 year old. She could conjure hurricanes and tidal waves, like her father. But she was more…_wild_. Her father, Percy, was like the gentle Poseidon who helped sailors get to shore. She was more like the "Earthshaker" part of Poseidon, the one that caused mass destruction with the blink of an eye.

"So Sacramento it is! Vamonos, Thalia!" Zita said. "Last one there's a rotten egg!"

"You're. _So. On." _Thalia said, already racing to the train station.

(Google)Translations:

"By the gods! I look like a beast."

"Let's go!"


	3. Chapter 3

**I am not a dude; therefore I am not Rick Riordian. I DON'T OWN PJO.**

**ZITA LOVED TO RUN.** She felt so free; it was like she left all her problems behind.

_Your father's in crippling debt._ Run

_You'll never hold your little brother. _Run

_You'll never stop running away. _Run Run Run

As her huge boots crushed the twigs beneath her feet, she felt like she was just stomping on a fly. The harder you stomp, the faster it dies. Zita picked up speed, Thalia and Mei-Yin had the advantage of longer legs, but she had more experience running.

Mei was breathing heavily now, drenched in sweat. She had been easy pickings from the start. Thalia was on Zita's heels though, determined to win. Artemis's longest standing Lieutenant couldn't lose to a newbie, a daughter of Demeter, an eleven-year-old, now could she?

Apparently, she could.

"Ha…Ha…You…little…cheat...er!" Thalia called from behind her. "No…pow…ers!" She had just tripped over a vine that had conveniently appeared on the otherwise clear path.

"It's not my fault I'm a plant celebrity!" Zita called back. It honestly wasn't her fault, plants tended to reach out to her when she was happy, scared, sad, or exited. Any emotion brought out her inner Demeter.

Zita was almost there, she could see the end of the trail they were on from here. _Just a little longer!_ She thought. Even she was starting to break down, and she ran daily.

"Ha!" She called, stumbling into the road. "I win! _Inclinarse, perdedores_!" Thalia came up the path next, on her knees and practically panting.

"Shut…up…Hernandez!"

Mei-Yin was next."O-Okay, I guess…I'm the rotten egg." She said and joined the two on the side of the road. "But, even rotten eggs smell worse than you two!"

"Not all of us have magic deodorant voodoo, sorry for your inconvenience." snapped Thalia. Honestly all of them smelt horrible, Mei-Yin only slightly better. "Anyway, we need a ride."

The girls looked at each other. They were on a road that led to some random national park. Zita never paid attention to where they stayed.

"We could hijack a park ranger." Mei suggested. "Or a golf cart!"

"I like the way you think, Mei," said Thalia. "Sadly, none of us can drive."

"But Thalia, you're fifteen, can't you-"

"None. Of us. Can drive." replied Thalia through gritted teeth. "_Understand?"_

Zita timidly raised her hand. "Uh…actually, I can drive a golf cart."

"What?" Thalia and Mei said. "Why can you drive but we can't?"

"Papá used to work at a golf course; I've been able to drive since I was eight." Zita replied. "If we knock out a driver, we can easily get out of her."

Mei and Thalia sat in stunned silence. Since when was _Zita_ the capable and responsible one? They must be thinking. Zita was annoyed why is it that nobody trusts me?

"Come on, let's go!" she said. On that note she sprang up like she hadn't just run a mile and zoomed off to the golf course. Mei shrugged and followed her. Zita was surprised_, why did they believe me?_

"Wait up!" Thalia called, joining them at last. "So, I'll give them enough volts to knock 'em out, Zita will take the key and start the cart while Mei keeps watch. 'Kay?"

"_Bueno_."

"Okay."

"Good."

Thalia reached the course first, and started looking for a cart. Soon, Zita joined her.

"Over there!" Zita whisper-shouted "Next to that _hombre feo_!" she pointed to an old man who was picking his teeth with an old toothpick. She and Thalia sneaked up behind him, Mei stood casually talking to him. '_Oh yes that uniform looks lovely this time of year'_ stuff like that.

"_One" _Thalia mouthed _"Two."_ She put her hand on his back "Three!" she said as sparks trailed down her arms and into the man's back. He stiffened and fell down in a heap. "Now, Hernandez!" Zita turned him over and reached to his jacket.

"_This_ man wears pocket protectors? _En serio?" _ Zita muttered. She was tired of sticking her hands in gross pockets. "Here we go!" she called. Zita raced over to the golf cart and hopped in. She practically force-fed the car the key and jerked it so hard it woke up on the first try.

"Hop in, guys_, que no tenemos todo el día_!" Zita called. Mei-Yin hopped on the back.

"Shotgun!" Thalia called as she raced to the car, elbowing security guards on the way. She flew into the car, or she at least she leaped _much _farther than should be possible. "Step on it!" she screamed.

'_Déjà vu' _Zita thought as she floored the pedal, speeding off the course. Screams from Mei and Thalia echoed behind her. She never said she drove _well._ Thalia was laughing her ass off while Mei furiously tried to buckle in.

"SLOW DOWN!" Mei screamed.

"HA…MEI, YOUR VENUS IS SHOWING!" Thalia screamed back, still smiling like an idiot.

Zita couldn't have been happier as they slowed onto the main road, she _must_ be a child of Hermes. Zita Hernandez, for the second time since she was nine, has stolen a golf cart.

**TRANSLATIONS:**

"…_Bow, losers!"_

"_Okay"_

"…_Ugly man!"_

"_Seriously?"_

"…_we don't have all day!"_


	4. Chapter 4

I haven't updated in weeks, nonexistent readers, because "CHRISTMAS IS FAMILY TIME SO GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE AND BAKE THE FUCKING COOKIES!"- Mom, 2014. I can really feel the family love. Also, long chapter. I don't own PJO, Rick Riordian does.

**MEI CLUNG FOR DEAR LIFE.** Zita drove recklessly down a dusty road, bouncing and bumping over the horribly-maintained pavement. It felt odd letting the youngest drive, but murder-eyes Thalia couldn't and Mei didn't fully understand the concept of a "car." It was arguably the best option. Mei could have fit in the seat, though. Yet she was strapped haphazardly on the back with two silver bows, a handkerchief (tent), and a comically large bag of Doritos. Huge ominous black clouds were also rolling in. _Great._

The three girls rode in silence, occasionally hearing Zita curse in a hodgepodge of languages when they missed turns. There were no police on their tail, they had pulled over and hoped Thalia's mist would hide an entire golf cart. Mei tried to enjoy the ride; this was almost as good as riding in a rickshaw, probably would be if she was sitting upfront.

Time flew, and the dark clouds made their move. It was going to get ugly if they didn't pull over soon.

"Uh… Thalia, Zita?" Thalia was shook out of her sleep and slowly focused on Mei's voice. She yawned before speaking.

"What is it, Zheng?" Thalia looked mad until she also heard the faint rain drops on the roof. "Oh…uh, you could ride upfront until we reach a place to rest." Mei gratefully positioned herself in between Thalia and Zita. It was squished. Mei's arms hung out, resting on the back of the seat, Zita was sitting on Mei's left leg, and Thalia was practically outside the vehicle.

"Eh, pass the Doritos up here, on of ya." Zita ordered in her usual way of speaking hurriedly. Mei reached back to grab the red bag.

"Should you really eat while driving?" Mei asked.

"I'm eleven, unbuckled and driving a stolen vehicle, do you really thing eating delicious Doritos could possibly make the situation worse, _mujer?_" Zita replied. She meant it jokingly, but she looked irritated and jumpy. She had been like this since they turned on to this apparently never ending road; acting nervous and short-tempered, like she couldn't wait to get off the road.

"I-I guess not… but, are you okay? You seem… kind…of…" Mei trailed off at the look Zita was giving her. Zita, noticing this, turned away looking guilty.

"I'm fine, Mei, just…hungry." Zita said, looking neither fine nor hungry. "'Kay?"

"Okay... if you say so, but you know… if-if you _weren't _you could tell me… okay?" Mei turned away, she may be a legacy of Venus, but she was horrible at relationships, weather she was a friend or something more, feelings weren't her forte. At all.

Zita, sensing what Mei meant to say, simply nodded. "Roger."

Mei fell asleep on Thalia's shoulder.

**TIME FOR A TIME SKIP**

Mei walked around the bustling streets of her old city, leaving her house in china town to cross the borders into the rest of San Francisco. Her mother had gone to the market and her father was at work, so she could do whatever. She stopped at Portsmouth when she saw something that could only be described as terrifying, the park was empty except for ten or so teenage girls with bow and arrows aimed at three grown men.

Mei blinked and then she saw something weird. The men… their image wavered, like a mirage. All of a sudden she saw the truth. Three muscular men, covered in head to toe in thick, dark fur, were _snarling_ at the girls. The one in the center was in an odd position, like how runners would look before a race. All of a sudden, they switched back to the tall men in leather coats. Mei was about to back away when the first arrow launched, landing square in the middle of the let man's heart. He literally howled and melted in to shadows.

The men turned into wolves covered in scars.

The middle on launched itself at a redheaded girl.

Mei did what felt natural. She threw her father's knife at it. The knife landed in the wolf's shoulder, and the girls watched as it's teeth snapped at thin air, inches in front of their comrade's face before melting into shadows. A twelve year old girl with auburn hair and some others shot at the third wolf, but only the auburn-haired girl's arrow shot him.

After the third Man-Wolf's shadow completely disappeared, the redheaded girl sank to her knees, starting to cry silently. The rest just stared at me. Finally, a girl with dark brown hair and dark eyes walked up to me, and looked me over, as if I was a very interesting puppy. She eventually spoke.

"What is thy name, young maiden?" She asked. She looked at me with respect now, offering a hand. I hadn't realized I had sat down (more like _fell_) until now. Mei strangely wanted to impress this girl. So she said something really intelligent.

"Uh…Mie! No! Mei! I meant Mei" Mei blushed deeply. "My name's Mei-Yin Zheng."

The girl with the braided hair pulled her up and shook hands. Smiling, all forms of superiority gone.

"Zoë Nightshade, pleased to meet thee acquaintance." She spoke like she was from ages ago. Maybe she was. _After this encounter_, Mei thought, _anything was possible._

"You killed the werewolf we've been hunting for ages with a mortal pocket knife," _A werewolf? _ "Saved one of our newest recruits, Willow," Willow, the redhead with oddly greenish skin blushed dark green and waved from her position on the floor "and impressed _Artemis_ in one minute."

"Wait- Artemis, as in the goddess of the moon, Artemis?" Mei said astonished, she knew a bit of mythology from both of her parents, but was it _real_?

"And childbirth, the wilderness, hunting, and maidenhood." The twelve year old who shot the last werewolf said. "I'm also leader of the Hunters of Artemis." She gestured at the other girls. "They're immortal maidens who follow me in hunting monsters nation-wide."

"W-w-ha? M-monsters?" Mei stuttered. "Wait…follow you… YOU'RE ARTEMIS?" Mei sat back down she was insane, meeting werewolves and Greek gods. She felt like screaming.

Zoë, oblivious to Mei's mental breakdown, continued talking.

"Continuing, we saw thee throw that knife, it was a dead shot, really exceptional for a mortal! But your blood doesn't smell like that of a mortal, does it, Artemis?"

"Yes, most likely a legacy, but she seems uninformed of the Greek world" Artemis mused "either way, she can take the oath." She pulled a brochure out of her jacket pocket. She was wearing a cloth jacket over a loose forest-green dress that came down to her knees, a hunting knife sheathed in a belt, and a quiver on her back.

Mei flipped through the brochure. She could get away from her ditzy mother and conceited father and join an awesome group of immortal girls. The only cost: no contact with men. Ever. Not even her dad. The choice was simple.

"Yes, I-I will join your hunt, Artemis." She said shakily. Zoë beamed. She loved giving a young maiden guidance. This young one would be a great addition to her branch of the hunters.

"Excellent, all you have to do is repeat after me, agreed?"

"A-agreed!" _Oh god its happening oh god oh go-_

"I pledge myself to the goddess Artemis."

"I p-pledge myself to th-the goddess Artemis." _Its happening I'm doing this. I really am not d-_

"I turn my back on the company of men, accept eternal maidenhood and join the hunt."

Mei's heart was like a race horse as she repeated the lines. She was no longer a small girl in Chinatown, she was a huntress, a follower of Artemis, a somebody.

She faintly heard Artemis say "I accept" and noticed the street lights now shone silver. She looked no different, same dark almond eyes, same black hair in two braids; Yet she _felt_ taller, stronger, and sturdier. She felt like she could lift cars to save babies. She was also so calm, she was now unaging, forever fourteen. She was Mei-Yin Zheng, legacy of Apollo and Venus, and now Hunter of Artemis.

She was unstoppable.

Zoë smiled softly.

"Come with me, sister, let me show you camp."

With Zoë-s hand on her shoulder, Mei walked away to the sound of girls greeting her and children playing, unaware of the monsters that were there previously.


	5. Chapter 5

**I don't own Percy Jackson or any other of Rick Riordian's characters. Honestly. Pinky Swear.**

Her blonde hair was a sweaty tangled mess. Her breathing was ragged after what felt like years of running. She had been separated from the rest of the hunters she was traveling with. She was terrified. She didn't really know who she called for, or when she started calling for them. She just felt rushed names exit her lips of their own violation. Her dad, her mom, Tobias and Malcom. Anyone who could possibly come to her rescue. It was greedy of her, wanting to put them in this situation. But the world was greedy. It was selfish and cruel, it let the innocent suffer and the evil thrive.

She tripped, and let out a gasp. Her ankle was on fire. She had learned what to do in case of a sprain, but this felt much worse. If her ankle was broken it was game over. She looked over and pulled her ankle towards her. It was slowly swelling like a balloon, red, and bleeding on one side. _Shit._ She had picked up tidbits from her uncle, and her mom was a bit too serious about the importance of knowing how to set a broken bone. But she had never actually found the need to do it before.

_Step one: Leave protruding bone alone. Don't push anything back into place. Cover the area with a clean bandage._ No bone was visible, luckily. She pulled herself over into a bush to hide while she tried desperately to treat her… fracture? Break? She didn't know the difference.

_Step two: Stop bleeding. Apply pressure with a cloth and then look over the wound. If blood soaks through… do something._ She couldn't fully remember. First she removed her boot. Then she ripped the sleeve of her shirt and put it on the long cut across her foot. She was probably pressing too hard, because her knuckles were turning white. The blood soaked through, making an ugly brown when mixed with the green fabric and mud. It felt like ages, but slowly the blood stopped. It wasn't sanitary, but at least she was no longer bleeding.

_Step three: Control swelling. Remove shoes, socks, toe rings and ankle bracelets._ She cut the thin wire wrapped around her ankle with an arrowhead. She bit the inside of her mouth to keep from screaming. The feel of even the smallest blade on the swollen thing was like hell on earth. Quiet curses spilled from her mouth in Greek, Latin and English. Her aunt would wash her mouth, she was swearing more than Nico.

That was all she knew until medical attention was available, but in this case, it wasn't. She racked her brain for anything else that might come in handy. She remembered the doctor's advice for when her brother, Tobias, had broken his arm. R.I.C.E. Rest, ice, compress, elevate.

She took off the sports bag she was wearing and searched through it. Ace bandages, perfect. It was only enough to wrap around once, but she was finally glad Will was paranoid. She clipped it with a couple of bobby pins, letting her hair fly around wildly. Fuck humidity.

She didn't have Ice, but it was freezing anyway, so a random rock would work. She slipped it under the bandage and winced at the cold. Then, she made the world's crappiest splint and fixed it to her leg. Trying to stand herself up, she grabbed a tree. She was wobbly and unstable, but somehow, she managed to eventually get on her feet.

She was scared, and all she could think about was water. She had been running towards the closest source she could find, straining her powers. If she could only find a puddle that wasn't _too_ muddy, she could heal her cuts and maybe even her ankle if she was lucky. She never was.

She tumbled down after she let go of the tree and decided to stay down low. It looked ridiculous, her left leg lifted up at the knee, the other one on the ground as she _crawled_ forward. It was degrading and demeaning, but at least her ankle was elevated and "resting". She was embarrassed, but wisdom was on her side as she pushed towards a small creek she could feel waiting in the distance.


End file.
